Shaq Fu is a video game developed by Delphine Software International and was released, among other systems, for the Sega Mega Drive and Sega Game Gear. It is a fighting game which stars basketball player Shaquille O'Neal, who has accidentally been transported to "The Second World" and tasked with saving the land from a mythical sorcerer named Sett Ra.

Story

Long ago and far away, in a place called The Second World, there ruled the heartless sorcerer Sett Ra. His hunger for power still gnawed at him even though his dominance over the Second World was unchallenged; he longed to extend his grasp to the fair First World, Earth.

Sett Ra's Plan was simple. He would destroy the Pharaoh of Egypt and usurp his throne. He created a perfect assassin from his own shadow who would serve him without question. This shadow became beast, the mightiest and most loyal of all Sett Ra's minions. Beast destroyed the Pharaoh, and the disguised Sett Ra soon sat upon his throne.

However, the Pharaoh son Ahmet was not deceived. He brazenly confronted the powerful sorcerer, threatening to reveal him. Sett Ra escaped from the palace to the Great Desert, where his grandfather, Leotsu the Wise, dwelt as a monk and hermit. Leotsu and Ahmet united with a coven of powerful wizards from the lands beyond Egypt, and their combined power was able to send Sett Ra back to the Second World, comatose and imprisoned within a rune-encrusted pyramid. He slumbered for a millennium, bound by the wrappings of a mummy. Beast roamed the Second World, dedicated to finding and releasing his dread master. Successful at last, Beast and Sett Ra vow to wreak havoc on those who stopped them before.They have gathered a battalion of formidable fighters to further this end.

To regain his full strength and to end his exile from the First World, Sett Ra must perform an ancient ritual upon a descendant of Ahmet. Beast has now returned from Earth with the child Nezu, a child in whose veins the royal blood runs pure. All is ready for the final cataclysmic battle-only the Chosen One can stop Sett Ra now. One who possesses strength, spirituality, courage, agility, intelligence, and unsurpassed skill in the martial arts. Where will the world find such a one? Only Shaq knows.

Gameplay

The Sega Mega Drive version is notable for including five more playable characters and three new stages (The Lab, The Wasteland, and Yasko Mines) than its Super Nintendo Entertainment System counterpart. Unfortunately the story mode is shorter than in the SNES version, but as a bonus, players can also walk down the stairs past Gargoyle's Peak to fight a blue version of Beast. The Amiga port was based on the Mega Drive port, but features less music and background animation has been removed.

The Sega Game Gear version only has six selectable characters, no tournament mode, and no in-game voices.

Basic Moves

Fast Kick:

Power Kick:

Fast Punch:

Power Punch:

Blocking: Hold to block high and mid-range attacks, or hold to block low attacks. Blocking Special Attacks will cause a minimal amount of damage to the blocker.

Shield: Pressing + makes characters create a shield around them. The shield will block projectile attacks, but other attacks will go through.

Throw: Characters can throw when up close by pressing +.

Taunt: Press to taunt. Taunting will leave a character open to attack. It doesn't do anything.

Fury Bar: As a character takes damage, their Fury Bar will charge up. When it is full, the word "FURY" will appear on it and the character will deal slightly more damage for a while.

Dizzy: If a character is hit multiple times in a row without dealing any damage themselves, they risk being dizzied. When dizzy, a character will be stunned on the ground while stars rotate above them. Recover from a dizzy by pressing buttons rapidly.

Characters

Auroch

Auroch is a simple outlaw that fights for pleasure. He taunts anything that crosses his path. Auroch's stage is The Wasteland.

Height: 5'11Weight: 456Age: 170Origin: 2nd World

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Boomerang

+

Pulls out a boomerang from behind his back and tosses across the screen. He cannot move until the boomerang either hits his opponent, or reaches its farthest distance, and then returns.

Ball and Pain

+

Pulls out a giant spiked ball and chain, then lashes out with it twice straight ahead.

Beast

Created by Sett from his own shadow, Beast is the mightiest of Sett's servants. His stage is Dragon's Pass.

Height: 6'10Weight: 410Age: EternalOrigin: Unknown

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Thermal Blast

+

Spits out a large, close-ranged puff of flame.

Spitfire

+

Spits out a fireball projectile that travels across the screen.

Sonic Roar

+

Roars and the screen flashes, which will hit the opponent from any place on the screen.

Roar

+

Roars. No damage, but an alternate taunt.

Colonel

A celestial champion. Battered, shattered, and almost dead, Colonel was found by Beast on an obscure battlefield, the sole survivor of a fierce struggle. His stage is The Lab.

Height: 6'4Weight: 357Age: 42Origin: Bio Corp

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Heavy Metal

+

Extends his arm, which opens up to reveal a gun. He then shoots rapidly across the screen.

Bionic Burst

+

Punches twice straight forward with extending arms.

Missile Launch

+

Launches a small missile out of his back, which homes in on his opponent.

Diesel

A longshoreman from the San Francisco docks, Diesel spends more time brawling than handling cargo. His stage is Yasko Mines.

Height: 6'1Weight: 205Age: 30Origin: USA

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Dash Upper

+

Dashes forward very quickly and uppercuts his opponent up close.

Crate Crusher

+

Throws a volley of energy-charged punches in front of him at various angles.

Dockside Dagger

+

Throws a small dagger projectile across the screen.

Kaori

Forced to obey Sett's will by the power of an enchanted ring, Kaori is the martial arts champion of an alien feline race. Her stage is Catwalk Falls.

Height: 5'3Weight: 123Age: 23Origin: Cimotha

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Cat's Claw

+

Slashes with her arms and sends a spiralling wave projectile across the screen.

Cyclone

+

Spins into a cyclone and moves forward. Holding will cause her to move forward until the move runs out. She will turn back to normal when she hits her opponent.

Energy Bomb

+

Tosses a ball of energy at the ground a short ways in front of her, which creates an explosion.

Teleport Kick

+

Vanishes in a puff of smoke, then appears over her opponent and drops onto them with a kick.

Leotsu

Leotsu is the last grand master of an ancient martial art, one that remains a mystery to the other masters. His stage is North Gate.

Height: 5'4Weight: 118Age: 500Origin: Far East

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Blast Kai

+

Launches a ball of energy from his Bo across the screen.

Bo Kai

+

Pulls out his Bo, then takes a quick jab forward with it.

Flash Kai

+

Pulls out his Bo and the screen flashes, damaging his opponent from any location.

Mephis

Mephis is a mighty undead sorcerer who was once Sett's apprentice thousands of years ago. His stage is Gargoyle's Peak.

Height: 5'7Weight: 165Age: UnknownOrigin: Unknown

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Lightning Arc

+

Raises his hands into the air, then a second later the screen will flash and a lightning bolt will hit his opponent from any place on the screen.

Lightning Jaws

+

Tosses a snapping dragon head made of electricity across the screen.

Burning Touch

+

Spins and tosses some powder into the air in front of him.

Nezu

Kidnapped by Beast to free Sett, Nezu is uncontrollable when angered. Although small, Nezu is agile, swift, and cunning. His stage is South Gate.

Height: 4'6Weight: 77Age: 12Origin: Far East

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Time Vault

+

Tosses a slow fireball forward. If it touches the opponent, it will make them unable to move for a bit.

Eno Blast

+

Tosses a ball of energy at the ground, which remains there until the opponent steps on it, at which point it explodes. Nezu may only have one Eno Blast onscreen at a time.

Eno Flip

+

Lays an Eno Blast on the ground and backflips twice. After he's finished his backflips, the Eno Blast will explode.

Eno Shot

+

Tosses a fireball projectile across the screen.

Rajah

A young mystic and skilled swordsman, Rajah submitted to Sett's sorcery while exploring the netherplans with his spirit. His stage is Vagabond Temple.

Height: 5'11Weight: 210Age: 38Origin: 2nd World

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Thunder Clap

+

Pulls out both his scimitars and smacks them together in front of him causing the screen to flash.

Sword Shockwave

+

Spins his scimitars and plants them into the ground, sending a wave projectile along the ground.

Scimitar Spiral

+

Pulls out both his scimitars and attaches them handle-to-handle, then tosses them across the screen.

Sett

An entity of ancient evil, Sett was defeated and entombed in another dimension ages ago. His stage is Tombstone Island.

Height: 6'10Weight: 212Age: 3000Origin: Unknown

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Mummy Wrap

+

Strikes forward with his arms, and extends a bunch of mummy wrapping for longer range.

Wedge Charge

+

Quickly dashes straight across the screen to ram his opponent.

Cosmic Missile

+

Blasts an energy bolt projectile across the screen.

Shaq

Shaq is a dominating force on and off the hoops court, rookie of the year, perennial all star and founder of Shaqido.. an extremely lethal martial art form.

Height: 7'1Weight: 301Age: 22Origin: USA

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Inferno Kick

+

Performs a high flaming roundhouse kick.

Shaq-urikin

+

Tosses a spinning blade projectile across the screen.

Voodoo

Many have fallen prey to Voodoo's ancient magic. She uses her power to hunt Sett's enemies. Her stage is The Forest.

Height: 5'8Weight: 143Age: 27Origin: Haiti

Move list

Name

Command

Description

Eagle Claw

+

Raises her hand and conjures an eagle onto it, which she tosses across the screen.

Voodoo Doll

+

Pulls out a doll of her opponent and a knife as well. Pressing any attack button will make her stab the opponent and damage them from anywhere on the screen.

Earthquake

+

Slams the ground with both hands and damages any opponent standing on it.

Stages

The Wasteland

Auroch's stage

Dragon's Pass

Beast's stage

The Lab

Colonel's stage

Yasko Mines

Diesel's stage

Catwalk Falls

Kaori's stage

North Gate

Leotsu's stage

Gargoyle's Peak

Mephis's stage

South Gate

Nezu's stage

Vagabond Temple

Rajah's stage

Tombstone Island

Sett's stage

The Forest

Voodoo's stage

History

Development

While initially pitched as a basketball game, Shaq Fu became a fighting game after talks with Shaquille O'Neal (a self-proclaimed fan of Mortal Kombat)[5].

Delphine acknowledged that they could not compete directly with Street Fighter II from a technical perspective, instead building a game that highlighted the team's strengths at computer animations[6]. The same rotoscoping techniques were used as in the earlier release, Flashback, where actors would be filmed against a blue screen, the frames would be digitised with the help of an SGI workstation, and artists would touch up the results using some of the roughly 7,000 original character sketches[6] as a base for defining characters[7].

Shaquille O'Neal plays himself in the game, though many sequences were directed by a kung-fu expert[7]. Other characters were filmed by movie stuntmen and women[7]. O'Neal also assisted with some of the dialogue[7].

Release

To promote the game's launch, Shaquille O'Neal released his second studio rap album, Shaq-Fu: Da Return. It peaked at #67 in the US the Billboard 200 chart, and #19 in Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.

Critical reception

Though it is often praised for its fluid animation and vibrant graphics, the game has been the subject of ridicule for its nonsensical plot and bad controls.